Pages

___________

In December of last year, a Colorado State Senator named Suzanne Williams was involved in a fatal car accident outside of Amarillo, TX. According to Reuters, Senator Williams veered into oncoming traffic, hitting a vehicle containing the Gomez family. The two children and Mr. Gomez survived, but the pregnant Mrs. Gomez was killed. Her baby was delivered by Cesarean section and remains in intensive care. Senator Williams' passengers, her adult son and two minor grandchildren, also survived.

The investigation is still ongoing, and once complete, will be presented to a Grand Jury to determine if charges should be filed against the Senator.

Now I don't have the details on this accident. I wasn't there. I don't know if Senator Williams was negligent. That's for the Grand Jury to decide. But she's still a big, fat hypocrite, and here's why.

At the time of the accident, Senator Williams was the vice-chairwoman of the Colorado senate's transportation committee. In that role, she pushed for legislation making unrestrained motorists and passengers a primary traffic offense. That means you could get pulled over here in Colorado purely on the basis of not wearing your seat belt. I have my own opinion about that particular piece of legislation, but here's the part where Senator Williams' hypocrisy is glaring: A Texas Department of Public Safety preliminary report concluded that the Senator was the only one in her vehicle who was wearing a seat belt. Her son and three-year-old grandson were ejected from the vehicle. Her seven-year-old grandson was not ejected, but was also unrestrained.

But wait! There's more!

The three-year-old was obviously too young to be riding in a car without a car seat or a booster seat. And the Senator had one in the vehicle. And following the accident, the Senator "moved the ejected boy to the car seat in the vehicle," according to the preliminary report.

In other words, she knew she was wrong, and tried to cover up her poor judgment after the fact.

Now, in terms of culpability, I totally blame the adult son for the fact that he and his children were not restrained in the vehicle. Only a complete idiot lets their children ride in a car unrestrained. But here's the thing - when I drive, people in my car wear seat belts. Period. This has been my policy for many, many years, and it's non-negotiable, because I've done the research and I know that my passengers will have a much higher rate of survival in case of an accident if they're restrained. If the people who ride with me don't like my policy, they're more than welcome to find another ride. Or they can walk. Their choice.

So, given the Senator's stance on restraints in moving vehicles, why didn't she have a similar personal policy? Because she's a big, fat hypocrite, that's why. Which is also why Colorado Senate President Brandon Shaffer invited Senator Williams to resign in light of recent events.

Naturally, Senator Williams has chosen not to do that, although she has been stripped of her transportation committee responsibilities.

What I wouldn't give for a public official who actually did what they said they would do, and who comported themselves in a way that doesn't discredit their office.

Maybe I'm just tired.

__________*You thought I was going to talk about that raving idiot Sarah Palin, didn't you? Unfortunately, she's not the only idiot in the public eye, and their are other writings out there that more effectively eviscerate her racist dumbassery.

About Me

I am a Hot Chick living in Castle Rock, CO with my fabulous family. We have a rescue dog named "Jackson," and she's a Basenji/Shepherd mix. She's something of a head case, but we love her. I'm a U.S. Navy vet, and I currently work as an Enterprise Solutions Architect, specializing in VoIP and multimedia contact center design. I care about social justice, libraries, science, the U.S. Constitution and the military. I'm a tax and spend liberal in a largely red county, but I try not to be stabby about it. I have a little resale side business called "Alastrina Enterprises." Stupidity, cupidity and wanton assholery piss me off, and I'm more than a little soft when it comes to dogs and those who serve others. I blog about whatever I feel like. I use foul language, so if that sort of thing offends you, feel free to fuck off now - if I'm unwilling to clean up my language for my fabulous Great Auntie Margie, I'm unlikely to do so for you. Newcomers are welcome here, especially those who disagree with me, but trolling and spamming will be met with the Shovel of Doom™.